シロナガスクジラ

し

ろ

な

が

す

く

じ

ら

Meanings

1

noun

blue whale

usually written using kana alone

The largest animal known to have ever existed. Scientific name Balaenoptera musculus.

シロナガスクジラは地ち球きゅう上じょうで最さい大だいの動どう物ぶつです。

The blue whale is the largest animal on Earth.

シロナガスクジラの鳴なき声ごえは何なん百びゃくキロも届とどく。

The calls of blue whales can travel hundreds of kilometers.

Kanji

白white
長long, leader, superior
須ought, by all means, necessarily
鯨whale

Related words

ナガスクジラ
Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus), a smaller rorqual species. シロナガスクジラ is much larger and has a bluish-gray coloration.
クジラ
General term for whale. シロナガスクジラ is a specific species.

Built from

白しろ+ナガスクジラ

Written forms

シロナガスクジラ
kana-only spelling
Katakana spelling is standard for this animal name; usually written in kana.
白しろ長なが須す鯨くじら
Kanji spelling is rare and mostly encountered in older or specialized texts.

Etymology

Compound of 白 (shiro, 'white') + 長須 (nagasu, 'long beard', referring to the baleen plates) + 鯨 (kujira, 'whale'). The name describes the whale's pale underside and long baleen.